Connecting Ag to Climate: Recent and Current Conditions
Wyoming experienced its 30th warmest and 29th wettest March out of 130 years, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Centers for Environmental Information database, retrieved April 22.
Scaling to the county level, the adjacent tables include temperature and precipitation rankings of select counties for the month of March.
The U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) map for Wyoming, released April 18, classifies over 22 percent of Wyoming as being abnormally dry (D0) and it shows over 21 percent of the state in moderate (D1) or severe drought (D2).
The remainder of the state – nearly 56 percent – is classified as none. In other words, these areas are not experiencing abnormally dry or drought conditions.
View the current USDM map at bit.ly/usdm-wy. Consider submitting a Condition Monitoring Observer Report at bit.ly/condtionreports.
Eight- to 14-day and one-month forecasts
NOAA’s eight- to 14-day forecast for May 1-7, issued April 23, shows a 33 to 70 percent probability of above normal temperatures for all of Wyoming, with the probability decreasing from east to west.
For the same timeframe, there is a 33 to 40 percent probability for above average precipitation along much of the western and northern borders of the state. On the contrary, the forecast shows a 33 to 50 percent probability for below normal precipitation from the southeastern corner of the state and west, along the southern border, to the western edge of Sweetwater County.
There is an equal chance for below, near or above normal precipitation for the rest of Wyoming.
The one-month forecast for May, issued April 18, indicates an equal chance for below, near or above normal temperatures and precipitation throughout Wyoming.
For additional information and NOAA forecasts, visit cpc.ncep.noaa.gov.
Windy K. Kelley is the regional Extension program coordinator and state specialist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Northern Plains Climate Hub, the University of Wyoming Extension and WAFERx. She can be reached at wkelley1@uwyo.edu or 307-367-4380.
